


Nine in the Afternoon

by Schneezed



Category: Persona 3, Persona Series
Genre: College AU, Comfort, Cuddling, Fluff, M/M, Trauma
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-30
Updated: 2019-10-30
Packaged: 2021-01-13 11:37:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 712
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21243467
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Schneezed/pseuds/Schneezed
Summary: A body can tell a thousand stories. Shinjiro’s tells one Akihiko can’t help but remember.





	Nine in the Afternoon

Akihiko isn’t entirely sure how long he’s been lying there. Arms wrapped around his pillow, legs beneath the sheets. His muscles burn; spending all his time practicing, constantly in the ring, it’s finally started to take a toll on him. He knew it wasn’t good for him. He also knew that - whenever his boyfriend walked through that door - he’d get a million ‘I told you so’s over the weekend. 

But, at the very least, it was Friday night. No classes or sessions in the morning. No meetings. No check-ups. No nothing. Just… Relaxing. 

The handle to the dorm room jiggles before light starts seeping into the room.

“Ugh, turn it off.” Akihiko groans, burying his face deeper into the pillow.

“Well, I would.” Shinjiro speaks, closing the door which darkens the room yet again. “But it’s the hallway light. Don’t think I’m allowed to mess with that.”

The taller man wanders over to their bed, planting a soft kiss on Akihiko’s forehead. The white-haired man peeks out from his pillowy cave with bloodshot eyes. “...What time is it?” He asks. 

“I dunno, like, nine in the afternoon?” Shinjiro responds. He throws his bag to the floor by the closet, taking off his beanie, and slowly unbuttoning his coat. All the while Akihiko is giggling. 

“I’m sorry, wait.” He speaks through pained breaths. “Did you just… Afternoon? Shinji, I think you mean evening. It’s nighttime.”

Shinjiro scoffs, turning to Akihiko briefly with a smirk. “Well, look who grew a brain cell.”

The boxer goes wide-eyed, grabbing a pillow from behind, and lobbing it towards his boyfriend; he deflects it easily, but feigns pain nonetheless. The two laugh it off, Akihiko rolling onto his back, yet his eyes stay locked on Shinjiro. Watching the man remove his jacket, he remembers just how reliant he once was on those layers. 

It had to have been… Four, five years since he threw out that red trenchcoat. Not like he could’ve used it anymore; it was drenched in ounces of blood, and Shinji was way too skinny to wear it anyway. Not that he was small by any means. Defined, but still noticeably different. He didn’t feel that need to constantly workout. To literally fight for his life. 

Shinjiro slides his white t-shirt over his head, revealing his less than clear back. That massive scar still sits oh-so-close to his spine; if it had just been a few inches closer, who know knows what could’ve happened. Paralysed. Comatose. Dead.

There’s a world where that night went wrong; Akihiko knows it. Some nights, he lies there. Thinking about all the what-ifs. What could have happened if Shinjiro died? Would he have gone to college? Would he still be friends with SEES? 

But seeing Shinjiro there? It’s enough to be a relief. To see him move, to walk, to smile. To see him do all the things he deserved to. 

“You done looking at my ass?” Shinjiro laughs, looking at Akihiko. He must’ve tuned out completely; not realising that his eyes were still trained on the other man. 

“S-Sorry…” He blurts out. “Just hazing. I’m… Seriously spent.”

Shinjiro’s smirk turns to a soft smile as he removes his pants, fingers hooking his socks and flinging them off. He strolls up to the bed - one which, technically, should only fit a single person - and goes to straddle Akihiko. He leans over, planting a kiss on his forehead. “I’m not going anywhere, you know? You don’t have to worry about me.”

The brunette falls to his side, laying behind Akihiko; his arms wraps around the boxer’s waist, pulling him into a tight hug. And, for a moment, they merely lay there. Uninterrupted. Together. 

“Hey, Shinji?” Aki speaks, resting a hand on his boyfriend’s. 

“Yeah?” He replies, clutching Akihiko’s hand like his life depends on it. It seems that even he isn’t sure of his words. That even he is afraid of the past. 

“I love you.” 

“I love you, too.” Shinjiro speaks against Akihiko’s skin, kissing the back of his neck before closing his own eyes, drifting away. For the first night in months - both because of the man behind him and his exhaustion - Akihiko manages to doze off soon after. And, at nine in the afternoon, they fall asleep.

Together.


End file.
